Mayerling, Royal Ballet Autumn 2022

[alison]

1 hour ago, Nogoat said:

And talking of the 'old days', it used to be that broadcasts were filmed twice - once to practise and get something in the can, and the other on the night itself. This was filmed only once, on opening night - not even part-way into the run when things generally get smoother - so there's no fall-back position! Was this just over-confidence, or a cost-cutting exercise - or both? 🤔

 [...]

What is really annoying is that Saturday's performance with the same cast was absolutely superb! After the 'practice' that was opening night, the cast had extended their 'comfort zone' and danced with a confidence, precision and abandon that completely swept me along. It was one of 'those' performances, and the great shame of it is that the cameras were not there to record it...

 

Yes - IIRC, back in 2009(?) when the Ed Watson DVD was recorded, I think he may have had 4 goes - the "unofficial" first night for Sun readers, and certainly two recorded performances, because I was interested to see whether they would replace the knocked-over chair in the scene at Mayerling (they didn't - I think it was pretty much the final performance that was committed to DVD).  As I think I've already said, I think it was rather tough on the cast, expecting them to deliver first time around, with no safety net, and no time to warm up to the roles.  And as we know, several things did go wrong.

 

It wouldn't be the only time they've done a single recording - the Ashton Dream bill with Steven McRae comes to mind - but even then there was a dry run first.  I do wonder whether this one is ultimately intended for streaming rather than anything else.

[Vanartus]

13 hours ago, Nogoat said:

 

I thought I'd hold off so I could write just the one post on two performances (by the same cast) with one of them from two different perspectives (ROH and cinema encore).

I apologise right away as it turned out just as long-winded as usual... 😐

 

Wed 5th - ROH - Osipova/Hirano
Sat 8th - ROH - Osipova/Hirano
Sunday 9th - encore showing of the Wed 5th cinema broadcast

 

I love Mayerling - it is a work of genius, a pure alpha-predator of a ballet; all muscle and sinew, power and fearful beauty, with not an ounce of unnecessary flab or filler. And all driven by primal urges we share with much of the animal kingdom - except, perhaps, that knowledge of our own mortality and, tragically, the ability to take that path in extremis.

 

So I did get slightly annoyed reading in The Times review that 'this overlong ballet has its faults (too many characters, too many scenes, too much plotting)', particularly after reading a quote in a Guardian article the previous week 'that if you have to read the programme, a ballet has failed in its job'. 

Well, no and no! 

Mayerling is NOT entertainment, to be supped on as a distraction; it's education, to be engaged with, assimilated and processed - and that takes work!

It's convoluted because life is messy and complicated, even (particularly?) for Royal Families. In fact, a ballet based on real life almost demands complexity as there are no magic wands to wave, no enchanted kisses to give, and certainly no deus ex machina to bring the whole edifice crashing down at the end. If there is a 'god' at work, it is MacMillan teaching us about the human condition.

The Guardian article also contained Balanchine's quote 'there are no mothers-in-law in ballet'. I would qualify that with 'but there can be if you do some homework or read the programme'. In Mayerling, a simple scowl and tap of a walking stick speaks volumes about the relationship between Elizabeth and her mother-in-law. Does anyone know when Balanchine came up with that quote? It would be wonderful to think that MacMillan included Archduchess Sophie to test that 'law'...

The lady sat next to me on opening night had not seen Mayerling before, but she had read the synopsis. She managed to keep up until about halfway through Act 2, then lost it (I didn't make it that far on my first viewing). She still enjoyed the spectacle and the dancing, though, as did I that first time.

 
So, if we can be encouraged by the choreographer to get the most from Like Water for Chocolate by watching RB Insights that were as long as the ballet itself, then I won't accept those complaints about Mayerling in The Times. And if I do want to be entertained while I'm being educated, then the best source I've found is the old South Bank documentary on YouTube (Part 1 here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0IntawIGac4).

I approached Wednesday's performance full of nervous expectation and anticipation - it was opening night at the ROH, with a cast of favourites, doing one of my favourite ballets, with the cameras present and the possibility of a video release!

I found myself getting unusually emotional during Act 1, and there was lots of (hopefully) surreptitious sniffing going on. I initially put it down to the excitement of the occasion and the fact that after a couple of uninspiring new full length ballets over the last two years, I was finally watching a true masterpiece.

 

However, it also happened on Saturday 8th at the ROH and even on Sunday at the encore screening. It happened mainly during Rudolf's PDD with his mother, which laid bare the gulf between his longings and her inability to reciprocate - it was tragic to watch.

But it was also triggered by his cruel mistreatment of Stephanie, in this case the sympathy switching to Francesca Hayward as she was thrown around like a rag doll - frightened, confused and trying to adapt to the situation she found herself in as best she could.

It was even bubbling away in the earlier PDD between Morera's Larisch and Rudolf; again, the communication between them, expressed through dance and expression, had a clarity that hit home. The three females - Morera, Hayward, and especially the poker-faced Mendizabel - were on top form, but the common denominator of Hirano's Rudolf really helped to expose and amplify the dynamics of those relationships.

 

The character of Rudolf is difficult to portray as it needs to demonstrate his gradual inner disintegration across the three acts. The dancer can't start off completely 'mad and bad', and neither can he leave his madness until his last scene with Mary. During the last run, there was some criticism of Hirano keeping too much of his inner turmoil, er, inside. I felt he certainly improved over three performances in the last run, but for this run I think there has been a marked improvement in projecting that gradual disintegration (and the causes of it) to the audience. This may just be his growing experience, but it might also be receiving the benefit of Ed Watson's insights now he has moved to coaching. 

Either way, his improved skills at projection, coupled with his incredible physical stature, strength and endurance, bodes well for the future. Rudolf may well be disintegrating before our eyes, but Hirano is consolidating his own interpretation of this character very nicely indeed.

 

And what of Osipova's Mary? She, too, goes on a journey from wide-eyed adolescent at the Imperial Court to nymphomaniac (going to meet someone alone, in their bedroom, dressed in a negligee sort of gives the game away) and, ultimately, to willing (and even eager) participation in the story's deadly conclusion.

I think Osipova mentioned in the broadcast between acts that she is at her best when she completely inhabits the character on stage. That doesn't happen every time with her (just most!), but when it does her performance and character's journey can reach heights that few others can. Examples would include the shifts in character required for the three acts of Sylvia, for Romeo and Juliet, and certainly for Anastasia (as an aside, this is one reason I'm a bit worried about the RB just doing Act 3 of Anastasia - I think it needs the context-setting of Acts 1 and 2 to make it work. It's that business of real-life stories being complicated again!).

Having seen yesterday's encore cinema broadcast of opening night, I'm actually now more impressed with the Act 2 bedroom scene than I was on the night itself - and I think this was down to how much I was hoping for a flawless performance as it was being filmed/broadcast.

And there were a few 'issues' that had a disproportionate effect on me - the revolver firing too soon and having to be fired again, plus the rather untidy, early dismount from a lift (and ironically, there was a segment in the interval broadcast that referred to the difficult of their PDDs - lots of hands being moved to lots of places. Of course, it worked perfectly there!).

The final PDD was harrowing, but at the same time somehow intensely beautiful to watch as they made the ultimate sacrifice for each other.

 

There were other gremlins as well, including Mitzi Caspar having to spend some time extricating her skirt from the chair she was trying to get up from, just when Rudolf was about to ask her to commit suicide with him. And please, please bring back proper blanks to be fired behind the screen for the double 'suicide' (they don't even have to be in the gun); otherwise the gunshots can be lost in the music, and the lack of a bright flash from the gun leaves doubt as to what's happened. Given all the technology available, why not give the job to a percussionist - surely they could get their beats and the bangs on the dot?

And talking of the 'old days', it used to be that broadcasts were filmed twice - once to practise and get something in the can, and the other on the night itself. This was filmed only once, on opening night - not even part-way into the run when things generally get smoother - so there's no fall-back position! Was this just over-confidence, or a cost-cutting exercise - or both? 🤔

And while I'm at it, why on earth was it broadcast and not streamed? I know it was an encore broadcast, but there were literally ten people in the city centre cinema we went to. This cost the two of us around £40 including parking and travel, of which the ROH would receive a fraction. I would much rather pay £25 direct to the ROH and settle down in front of a TV - no hassle, no traffic jams, no parking, no having to go out to the desk to tell them there was no sound (though someone else did that, not me), and a much better picture quality (it's in the nature of the projection equipment that blacks are rendered a dark grey - modern TVs pride themselves on rendering black, so if a TV was that bad it would be straight back to the shop!). 

I didn't realise until I went to the Saturday performance, which wasn't filmed, that the lighting was exactly the same as on opening night; no allowance was made for filming. Yes, the cinema broadcast was dark, but it was still watchable (key dancers were well lit) and nicely reflected the overall dark mood.

 

What is really annoying is that Saturday's performance with the same cast was absolutely superb! After the 'practice' that was opening night, the cast had extended their 'comfort zone' and danced with a confidence, precision and abandon that completely swept me along. It was one of 'those' performances, and the great shame of it is that the cameras were not there to record it...

 

In a ballet that is a relentless challenge for the male lead, I'm becoming increasingly in awe of a scene in which he does not feature - when Larisch arrives at the Vetsera household, where Mary and her mother are arranging flowers. This scene becomes the historical axis around which the increasingly complex plot is cajoled into moving in the direction that ultimately leads to tragedy and, eventually, repercussions across Europe and the world.

This is instigated and steered by deception on the part of Larisch. Three women in a drawing room, and a game of tarot; and that music - full of foreboding. A stunning piece of story-telling. I'm reminded of the bit of The Second Coming that starts 'Turning and turning in the widening gyre' and ends 'Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world', and it makes me shiver.

And the things is, we know what's going to happen - we have a god's-eye view, but we are impotent gods; all we can do it watch it unfold, Cassandra-like. The impact of that scene was enhanced by the excited dancing of Osipova's Mary - full of the fast, hyperactive movement of the adolescent, but also accompanied by laser-sharp movements and stops - in contrast to Morera's more deliberate movements in controlling events.
Unlike some, I have a lot of sympathy for Larisch. I think she genuinely cares for Rudolf (more than all the other women thus far) but is gradually losing her influence and ability to rein in his increasingly deranged behaviour. She hopes that 'younger blood' will be able to help, and forgoes her own position in a selfless quest to help Rudolf.

Why do I say this? Because at no point does Rudolf ask her to die with him. To me, her motive is not to find a sacrificial lamb, but a salve for his troubled mind. She may be an arch-manipulator, but that alone doesn't make her evil. From our privileged position, it can look like the bestowing of a death sentence (especially with that sombre chord that is played when she places her hand on Osipova's shoulder) - but that is the sadness that comes with our knowledge of the future. Larisch sees a slightly different future, and her contained excitement is contained and only manifested in her stuttering exit across the stage.

 

I've already mentioned how MacMillan managed to demonstrate the relationship between daughter- and mother-in-law. A couple of other tiny, but telling, encounters worked particularly well. The Hungarian officer trying to flirt with the Empress is beautifully put in his place by a suave Gary Avis demonstrating that the officer might well be able to kiss the outside of her hand, but in turning that hand over and kissing it on the inside he implies he has much more intimate access - superb!
And I just love the way Mary's increasingly reckless relationship with Rudolf is implied in the way she traverses the stage to him, moving the gun around in circles like a gunslinger, and also when she goes across to him, arms flailing like a windmill. 
And I mentioned in the last run how Mary moving across the stage in the suicide scene on her knees, and prostrating herself in a cross made perfect sense when I found out that the land underneath where they died became a place of worship. There are so many layers to be mined here...

Finally, I'd like to say how much I enjoyed Leticia Dias' Louise - she really does have 'presence'.

 

Thank you for reading all of this! 

 

 

The best ever review I’ve read in such a long time! Wow - I’m on a high!

[postie]

16 hours ago, capybara said:

This is very interesting, but how do you know this applies to dancers in the RB ( or any other company)?

 

They are (a) professional athletes, (b) very valuable asset's and (c) it is standard practice with elite performers.

 

I can't say for certain; it's possible the ROH has its head in the sand on this though it seems unlikely. Just in London there are so many centres of sporting excellence whether football, rugby, athletics, rowing, F1, tennis, etc. It's an industry.

 

just to add: I remember an interview with Carlos Acosta in which the conversation turned to his early influences (in Cuba). He said that one of the things that drew him in to dance was that he could equate what he was physically working towards with professional footballers, and that helped him considerably. 

 

Edited October 11, 2022 by postie

[zxDaveM]

9 minutes ago, postie said:

 

They are (a) professional athletes, (b) very valuable asset's and (c) it is standard practice with elite performers.

 

I can't say for certain; it's possible the ROH has its head in the sand on this though it seems unlikely. Just in London there are so many centres of sporting excellence whether football, rugby, athletics, rowing, F1, tennis, etc. It's an industry.

 

 

England Rugby used to 'borrow' the RB's physio, as I recall (may still do!)

[Guest oncnp]

16 minutes ago, postie said:

 

They are (a) professional athletes, (b) very valuable asset's and (c) it is standard practice with elite performers.

 

I can't say for certain; it's possible the ROH has its head in the sand on this though it seems unlikely.

 

At least the ROH seems to be paying quite a few people to look after the dancers (per the website and we all know how accurate that is)

• Clinical Director, Ballet Healthcare
• Company Physiotherapists (x 4)
• Pilates Instructor
• Gyrotonic Instructor
• Performance Psychologist
• Ballet Rehabilitation Specialist and Class Teacher
• Ballet Masseur
• Sports Science (x 2)
• Registered Dietician
• Medical Advisor
• Company Podiatrist
• Healthcare Coordinator

 

 

[postie]

13 minutes ago, oncnp said:

• Sports Science (x 2)

 

Interesting!

[bangorballetboy]

 

 

[Guest oncnp]

The video is from 2016 and I hope they are continuing the good work despite COVID and budget cuts.

 

If you can stand a little more (from 2018) Raising the barre: how science is saving ballet dancers | Ballet | The Guardian

 

and if you really want to get technical Dance Exposure, Individual Characteristics, and Injury Risk over Five Seasons in a Professional Ballet Company - PubMed (nih.gov)

 

Sorry, as you can tell this kind of thing fascinates me......

[Guest oncnp]

Reading ahead of tomorrow's links

 

Sex, drugs and pas de deux: how Mayerling’s flame keeps burning | Ballet | The Guardian

 

Lady  MacMillan ...."she enjoys seeing them through new eyes. “It’s the only way these ballets will stay alive,” Deborah says. “If they’re taught as if they were in aspic they’ll die.”

Edited October 12, 2022 by oncnp

[Sim]

The above article will be in tomorrow's links, along with many others of interest to ballet and dance lovers everywhere.  A huge thanks to Jan and Ian for their continued hard work and dedication in trawling worldwide information to provide it to us in one place.  

[Guest oncnp]

14 minutes ago, Sim said:

The above article will be in tomorrow's links, along with many others of interest to ballet and dance lovers everywhere.  A huge thanks to Jan and Ian for their continued hard work and dedication in trawling worldwide information to provide it to us in one place.  

My only intent was to highlight an article that was published after the Links had been posted. As the post has clearly caused some upset, please remove it. 

Edited October 12, 2022 by oncnp

[Sim]

2 minutes ago, oncnp said:

My only intent was to highlight an article that was published after the Links had been posted. As the post has clearly caused some upset, please remove it. 

It hasn't caused upset.  I was just reminding everyone that there is further reading in the links every day.  And because of Ian and Jan's hard work, whatever is missed on one day because it appears after the links are published, it will be there the next day.  Of course, if they or we miss anything of interest please let us know.  The links are a useful and wonderful archive so we as mods strive to get every piece we can included every day. 

[simonbfisher]

Can someone explain something that is puzzling us …. When Larisch enters the music room in Act 2 she is the only woman not wearing gloves, and she seems to make a point (and this was strongly picked up by the cameras for the broadcast) of emphasising her bare arms. Why is this? Are we missing a vital piece of plotting, or did she leave her gloves chez Vetsera, or does it somehow show that she is no better than she should be? We have several more performances to watch and I would love to be able to stop worrying about this.

[Bluebird]

I noticed this too and, at the performance on Friday,  I made a special point of checking if

Yasmine Nagdhi was wearing gloves in this scene - she was! 

Edited October 12, 2022 by Bluebird

[simonbfisher]

Odd! Neither of us can remember what happened at the Rehearsal …

[Sim]

5 hours ago, Bluebird said:

I noticed this too and, at the performance on Friday,  I made a special point of checking if

Yasmine Nagdhi was wearing gloves in this scene - she was! 

Given the formality of the Viennese court at the time, it would have been unacceptable for a lady to attend an event with the Emperor and Empress in bare arms, especially Larisch, who would have known better (she had been a close friend and lady in waiting to Sisi) and who is desperate to stay in the good graces of the royal family.  So it's an interesting one.  Maybe it was simply a case of 'wardrobe fail' or that Miss Morera simply forgot to put them back on before her entry (although that would surprise me).  Did anyone notice if it was the same on Saturday night?

[Bluebird]

29 minutes ago, Sim said:

Given the formality of the Viennese court at the time, it would have been unacceptable for a lady to attend an event with the Emperor and Empress in bare arms, especially Larisch, who would have known better (she had been a close friend and lady in waiting to Sisi) and who is desperate to stay in the good graces of the royal family.  So it's an interesting one.  Maybe it was simply a case of 'wardrobe fail' or that Miss Morera simply forgot to put them back on before her entry (although that would surprise me).  Did anyone notice if it was the same on Saturday night?

 

I just checked the 2009 Mayerling Blu-ray and Sarah Lamb isn't wearing gloves either.  Maybe it's personal choice? Is it possible that the gloves make partnering more difficult for some dancers?

[Jorgeb]

1 hour ago, Bluebird said:

 

I just checked the 2009 Mayerling Blu-ray and Sarah Lamb isn't wearing gloves either.  Maybe it's personal choice? Is it possible that the gloves make partnering more difficult for some dancers?

And I just checked the 2018 Mayerling DVD and Laura Morera doesn't wear gloves.

[Jorgeb]

I checked the 1994 Mayerling DVD and Lesley Collier isn't wearing gloves either.

[Sim]

Sounds like Yasmine is the odd one out then!  

[Sim]

I have spoken to someone close to the production, and there are three potential reasons for gloves or not:

 

1.  It’s a very quick costume change between chez Vetsera and the Hofsburg scene so it could simply be a question of not having time to put them on;

 

2.  She arrives late to the party so might not have had time to complete her outfit or she arrives having decided to make a point of being different; and 

 

3.  She wears the gloves because, despite everything, she is still a countess going to the imperial palace and would not turn up with bare arms…she knows the etiquette and protocol and it would be taken as a disrespectful gesture.  
 

So….a few possibilities.  My feeling is that she would have worn gloves to such an event, but it seems to be the decision of the role’s interpreter. 

[Beryl H]

Gloves would make handling the cards more difficult, imagine if she dropped them at the critical moment (love the music at this dramatic point BTW).

Edited October 13, 2022 by Beryl H

[Sim]

15 minutes ago, Beryl H said:

Gloves would make handling the cards more difficult, imagine if she dropped them at the critical moment (love the music at this dramatic point BTW).

Hi Beryl....we are discussing the scene when she arrives at the party in the Hapsburg palace, so the one just after the scene at the Vetseras' house where the cards are used.  

[JohnS]

Looking forward to today’s double Mayerling and first live performances for me this season. I enjoyed the cinema encore - sadly there were perhaps 10 people in Rheged’s large and impressive main cinema. Petroc Trelawny’s hosting and the interviews/rehearsal footage were excellent, as was the recent Insight. As others have said, it was the ‘supporting’ cast (if I can use that shorthand) who made the most impact. I was taken with Nogoat’s observation that Osipova/Hirano were excellent in their second performance (with no gun problems) so have high hopes for this evening. And Sim’s review of the McRae cast’s first performance bodes well for the matinee.

Pleased to say my Avanti train is running, just a few minutes late, but the weather’s been pretty awful this morning: an absolute deluge driving to Penrith this morning. More worryingly I did notice that the very popular train just after 10:00 was cancelled.

[Jamesrhblack]

In case anyone remains interested, Naghdi not only wore gloves to the Emperor’s birthday party, but made a point of pulling them up as she entered…

[JohnS]

Very much enjoyed today’s matinee. Steven McRae and Sarah Lamb were most impressive. I rather liked McRae’s nonchalant stage tidying of bits of Hungarian pamphlets which might have caused problems for Mitzi and the Hungarian officers but trust the ‘whore’ was not surprised as to where he disposed of the waste (apologies I couldn’t see who was dancing). The cast gave a real sense of ensemble but were perhaps not quite as convincing as the cinema cast. Very good to see James Hay’s Bratfisch and looking forward to tonight.

[Jamesrhblack]

It’s always interesting to see how different people react to a performance. I was impressed at Steven McRae’s partnering (the Stephanie pas de deux was gasp inducing) and I thought his world-weary, brooding interpretation much more nuanced than the 2018 broadcast but with Sarah Lamb I felt he was operating in a vacuum. She is, of course, an exquisite dancer but everything seemed too safe, too controlled, even calculated. I’m probably in a minority here as the audience cheered them to the echo but for me it was the least moving Mayerling I have ever seen. I’d agree with the praise for James Hay, a most beautiful dancer and stage presence, and was also very taken with Annette Buvoli’s Elisabeth. However, this afternoon the only moment that tugged at my heart strings was Larisch’s realisation that Rudollf was lost to her, danced with passionate abandon by Yasmine Naghdi in a role that suits her onstage sophistication and elegance very well indeed. 

[MJW]

This afternoon performance was my first ever Mayerling live and have only seen snippets on screen beforehand, so I have nothing to compare it with.

 

Certainly the darkest ballet I think I have seen and possibly not something to watch if one is feeling particularly low! I also found the constant scene changes (although necessary) interfered too much with the flow of the storyline.

 

Nevertheless excellent performances all round (I had booked particularly to see James Hay and Anna Rose O'Sullivan!) Also sat next to a lovely lady whose granddaughter was on stage as one of the courtesans 

 

Back tomorrow for the Friends open day!

Edited October 15, 2022 by MJW

[zxDaveM]

3 hours ago, Jamesrhblack said:

In case anyone remains interested, Naghdi not only wore gloves to the Emperor’s birthday party, but made a point of pulling them up as she entered…

 

probably got an ace tucked into one of them...

[RobR]

29 minutes ago, MJW said:

 

 

Edited October 15, 2022 by RobR
Error

[RobR]

@MJW

 

It’s nice of you to describe the dancers as ‘courtesans’, but the cast sheet lists them as ‘whores’. 😀

[MJW]

10 minutes ago, RobR said:

@MJW

 

It’s nice of you to describe the dancers as ‘courtesans’, but the cast sheet lists them as ‘whores’. 😀

 

Well I was trying to think of a nice way to do so - the lady I was sitting next to (whose granddaughter was on stage as was one of them) called them prostitutes, but I think my description is nicer (!) 

Edited October 15, 2022 by MJW

[RobR]

13 minutes ago, MJW said:

 

Well I was trying to think of a nice way to do so - the lady I was sitting next to (whose granddaughter was on stage as was one of them) called them prostitutes, but I think my description is nicer (!) 

😀😀